Derrell Tidwell, LCSW, LICSW

Derrell Tidwell is a licensed clinical social worker with more than four decades of professional experience. He uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy alongside client-centered and trauma-informed approaches to help people manage stress, anxiety, depression, and relationship concerns.

He focuses on practical, down-to-earth work. Sessions aim to identify patterns, build coping skills, and strengthen the personal resources someone already has. He emphasizes the client's own knowledge of their life and goals when shaping a plan.

Clients often bring questions about grief, eating concerns, self-esteem, or major life changes. He also addresses issues such as codependency, communication problems, caregiver stress, and feelings of isolation. Work may include addressing multicultural concerns and challenges people encounter around identity and belonging.

His approach mixes short-term, solution-focused steps with deeper psychodynamic reflection when helpful. That can mean setting clear, manageable goals and practicing concrete tools between meetings, while also looking at long-standing patterns that keep someone stuck.

Derrell holds LCSW and LICSW credentials and practices from Washington. He offers sessions by video, phone, live chat, or text messaging to fit different schedules and needs. To get started, prospective clients follow the site’s matching process and schedule a time that works for them.

How his approaches translate to online work

Derrell integrates Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and client-centered methods to guide online sessions. CBT focuses on identifying unhelpful thoughts and testing new behaviors, which suits goal-oriented work like easing anxiety or managing panic. Client-centered therapy emphasizes listening, respect, and following the client’s pace, which helps people feel heard while deciding what changes matter most.

He also draws on trauma-focused techniques when past events are getting in the way of daily life. That kind of work looks at how memories and reactions influence current choices and helps people develop safer ways to cope. Choosing the right mix of methods is a collaborative process - he works with each person to set goals, try approaches, and adjust the plan based on what helps most.

Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging. Video is useful for deeper conversations and skills practice, phone sessions can fit into a short break or when bandwidth is limited, and chat or messaging works well for brief check-ins or ongoing coaching between meetings. These options make scheduling more flexible and let people keep progress moving no matter where they are.